It’s been 2 1/2 weeks since I cut off the tip of my thumb. I visited the plastic surgeon last week, and he said it looks like the skin has grafted back on and that the scar will barely be noticable. Here’s what it looks like today:

You can clearly see the slice across the nail where I got cut, and you can also see the tape holding the tip of my thumb in place. When the tape comes off on its own, I won’t have to cover it anymore. It should be about a year or so until I have normal feeling return. Although the dried blood under my nail is really grossing me out, I’ve been warned not to try to clean it out because it’s part of the healing process and I could injure my thumb further.

Overall I’m very happy that I didn’t need stitches and that it’s healing so well. I’m also happy that I didn’t need to take any pain medication. In fact, I was kind of shocked that it didn’t hurt nearly as bad as I would imagine cutting a fingertip off would hurt.

I feel very lucky to have most of the use of my thumb back, though things like putting on earing backs or turning a key are still difficult. The doctor said that the thumb provides about 50% of the function of your hand, and I believe it now. Being able to get my thumb wet is helpful now, too, since washing my hair one-handed was tough and time consuming. It’s pretty good news overall.